1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dial-type manipulator for manipulating devices mounted on an automotive vehicle, such as an air-conditioner, an audio system or a navigation system.
2. Description of Related Art
The on-board devices, such as an air-amount adjuster, a temperature setter or an air-outlet selector of an air-conditioner, are often manipulated by a dial-type manipulator mounted on a dashboard. An output volume of an on-board audio system may be controlled by the dial-type manipulator. Examples of dial-type manipulators are disclosed in JP-A-2000-67696 and JP-A-2001-184969. In these dial-type manipulators, a large gear is connected to an outer periphery of a dial member, and a rotational position detector such as a rotary resistor is driven by a small gear engaging with the large gear.
In a process of assembling the dial-type manipulator, the large gear has to be engaged with the small gear at a correct rotational position. It is not easy, however, to assemble the gears at the correct engaging position by manual operation. If both gears are not assembled AT the correct rotational position, the rotational position detector is not correctly rotated to a desired position. This means that the on-board devices are not manipulated as intended.